News

Y4 Natural Balms

Taking inspiration from stories of some of the people of the Amazon Rainforest, Y4 created a balm useful as a remedy for insect bites and stings from plantain (the grass not the fruit), olive oil and beeswax. We boiled the oil, then added the plantain and simmered for another 10 minutes, then we strained the plantain out as it’s useful goodness had transferred to the oil. Next we added the beeswax, and allowed it to melt. Finally we let the mixture cool, then poured it into little pots so everyone could take one home to use. We’ve kept a couple of big jars in school for any nettle stings we get during Outdoor Learning or at playtime.

During this time, we reflected on why it is that we may have forgotten the uses of many plants and trees that are right on our doorstep. We also talked about why using beeswax and olive oil were useful ingredients – they don’t help with the antiseptic properties, but heating, melting and then cooling creates a useful substance AND links with our science learning about ‘changing states’.